It was cold enough to wear a hat and mittens in the Brother Benno’s warehouse Wednesday morning, but for the several dozen volunteers giving out hundreds of toys to families who couldn’t afford them, it really didn’t seem cold at all.

Undaunted by temperatures dipping into the 30s, volunteers from their teens to their 80s, dressed in Christmas sweaters and warm jackets, started arriving at 5:30 a.m. at the Brother Benno’s Center on Production Avenue in Oceanside to prepare for the arrival of 800 families who were invited to pick up a gift for each of their children. It added up to 2,400 toys.

By 7 a.m. a line formed down the block with families carrying bright green slips of paper — their admission tickets for the 9 a.m. start of this year’s Big Toy Giveaway.

When her turn came to sit on Santa’s lap and tell what she most wanted, Liah Herrera, 4, said she would like a present for her cousin Diana — and maybe a fairy doll.

Clutching her candy cane and a small bag of homemade cookies, Liah and her mother, Zoila Herrera, walked through a hallway decorated with huge red and green Christmas posters on the way to the toy pickup area, while “It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas” was playing. Along the way, they were offered a cup of hot chocolate. “People here make you feel welcome,” said Herrera, who had never been to the center’s toy giveaway before.

The center is best known for the warm breakfast served there six days a week to the homeless and working poor, and its programs to help people overcome addictions and find jobs.

Behind the scenes in the middle of the warehouse, out of view of children and separated by stacks of furniture, Liah’s gift bag was being assembled by a crew of volunteers, some of whom could only be seen by the tops of their Santa hats.

“When you see everyone walking out happy, carrying a bag of toys, it’s a good feeling,” said volunteer Erin Hardin.

Ten tables of new toys donated by businesses and community members were stacked with everything from dolls and Legos to soccer balls and board games, organized by age and gender. Volunteers walked from table to table filling a large heavy-duty black plastic bag with a toy, stuffed animal and stocking stuffer for each child listed on a green slip of paper — a voucher — that each family brought. Many families got the voucher at Brother Benno’s Thanksgiving Day dinner.

The toy giveaway began 20 years ago with about 100 toys and typically was held on Christmas morning. But since then it’s grown, and families started lining up outside in the cold at 4 a.m.

“It has rained hard, and we didn’t want people going through that again,” said Denise Seymour, who coordinated this year’s giveaway. The toys weren’t given directly to the kids, so they would be surprised on Christmas morning.

“I’m hoping people take away a sense of family,” said Harold Kutler, who founded the center 29 years ago with his late wife, Kay, who was known for hugging everyone who came.